From the caves of Perrier to Pardines, or the history of the village of Les Roches

The hiking trail climbs up to the village of Les Roches, a prehistoric site currently undergoing restoration, then leads to Pardines via the plateau before descending through a beautiful acacia forest. Here you can see the outcrop of ancient lacustrine sediments, known as Lahres.

Details

994316
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 7.04 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 2h 35 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 188 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 187 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 613 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 428 m

Photos

Description of the walk

Follow the signs for "Chemin des Grottes".

(S/E) Start from the car park at Perrier Town Hall, below the church. Take Rue de la Poste, cross Avenue de l'Église (take care), continue opposite along Rue des Grottes until you reach an intersection. Turn left onto Rue du Château until you reach a fountain.

Yellow-red and white-red markings (GRP® des Couzes thenGR®300)

(1) At the fountain, turn right onto Rue de la Baricoune, which climbs towards the caves. Continue on Chemin des Grottes after a right-angle turn, avoiding a recent house.

(2) In the village of Les Roches, keep to the left. The steep path makes a hairpin bend then an S-bend. You can leave Chemin des Grottes for a moment to venture towards Tour Maurifolet on the left. Chemin des Grottes winds through the village to lead to the Pardines plateau.

(3) Turn left to walk along the edge of the plateau. Pass the first turn-off on the right.

(4) Turn right to continue on the plateau. At the T-junction, take the tarmac path on the left (GR®300), which leads to Pardines, Rue de la Queuille.

Yellow markings

(5) At the entrance to Pardines, keep left onto Rue de la Matève. At the junction with Rue de la Loubeyre, turn left to descend towards Perrier through the forest.

(6) At the fork, continue straight down towards Perrier.

(7) On the road, continue straight ahead towards the Perrier cemetery.

(8) Keep left on Chemin des Triavaux until you reach an intersection in the village of Perrier. Go down Rue du Coudert on the right, cross Avenue de l'Église or Avenue de l'Oradoux (take care), then turn left onto Rue des Gravières to reach Perrier Town Hall. You will arrive at the car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 429 m - Parking area at the Town Hall. Close to the - Couze Pavin (rivière) à finaliser
  2. 1 : km 0.27 - alt. 445 m - On the right opposite the fountain
  3. 2 : km 0.54 - alt. 489 m - On the left
  4. 3 : km 1.32 - alt. 586 m - On the left at the edge of the plateau
  5. 4 : km 2.46 - alt. 599 m - Keep to the right to stay on the plateau
  6. 5 : km 4.24 - alt. 594 m - On the left Rue de la Mateve
  7. 6 : km 4.9 - alt. 570 m - Continue straight downhill towards Perrier
  8. 7 : km 5.56 - alt. 547 m - Junction with the road
  9. 8 : km 6.4 - alt. 469 m - Turn left onto the Chemin des Triavaux
  10. S/E : km 7.04 - alt. 429 m - Parking area at the Town Hall

Notes

Wear good walking shoes to climb up to the village of Les Roches.
The Pardines plateau is generally very windy: dress warmly in winter.

Worth a visit

The main attraction of the hike is the crossing of the troglodytic village of Les Roches. This ancient prehistoric village was inhabited at various periods: 17 families lived there in the 19th century. The last inhabitant left the village around 1945 (parish archives).
See also: Association pour la Sauvegarde du Patrimoine de Perrier ( Association for the Preservation of Perrier's Heritage )
The return path to Perrier passes by an outcrop of ancient lake sedimentation: these are Lahres resulting from mudslides caused by various ground movements under the effect of volcanism.

 Always be cautious and plan ahead when you're outdoors. Visorando and the author of this route cannot be held responsible for any accidents occurring on this route.

The GR® and PR® markings are the intellectual property of the Fédération Française de Randonnée Pédestre.

Reviews and comments

4.6 / 5
Based on 23 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.5 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.4 / 5
Route interest
4.7 / 5
Magbad
Magbad

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 12, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful hike to discover cave dwellings and a unique geological site. The cave dwellings have been beautifully restored by an association in Perrier. There is a secure donation box along the route to help support the association.
Plateau offering magnificent views.

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User 25611011

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 05, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Difficulties in Pardine finding the forest path back to Perrier.
A very beautiful walk. The cave village is a curiosity and the 360° view of the plateau is magnificent.

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chespeel
chespeel

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 25, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

The Perrier caves are worth seeing, but the route there is a bit monotonous.

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User 24717464

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 23, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Very nice route.
Well done, Visorando!

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josiane.fayet
josiane.fayet

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : May 12, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A very pleasant hike in May, with a variety of landscapes

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boyrando
boyrando

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 14, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Very beautiful hike, lovely site, pleasant, beautiful view

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Jean-Louis Pinault
Jean-Louis Pinault
• Edited:

Thank you for your comments. Indeed, doing the circuit in reverse would have the advantage of ending the hike in the village of Les Roches and enjoying it to the full. In fact, I have been doing it regularly for half a century, at a time when the Perrier caves were not yet called the village of Les Roches because they were not developed.
As they were not secured, they were primarily a local curiosity. The main attraction of the hike was the exceptional view of the Monts Dore from the Perrier plateau. Doing the hike in the opposite direction would take away the pleasure of this long approach.

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bcg243
bcg243

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 16, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

A beautiful, easy route for experienced and occasional hikers alike. There is a bit (too much) of tarmac road on the plateau, but you can take a gravel path that branches off to the left at point 4 and joins point 7, although this significantly reduces the length of the route and takes away the pleasant section in the undergrowth after point 5.
Beautiful 360-degree panoramic views of the surrounding landscape. Pushchairs for young children will have difficulty between points 2 and 3.
This circuit allows you to discover the very interesting troglodyte site of Perrier. I think it can be taken in reverse so that you can linger at the troglodyte site on the way back before descending to PERRIER.

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fgregory63
fgregory63

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 30, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

An easier variation of the 11 km Yellow PR. Personally, I prefer to do it without the return trip, so I can enjoy the caves at the end!

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thimaluflo@orange.fr
thimaluflo@orange.fr

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 27, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Hike to the Perrier caves, very good!

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LOISON Thierry
LOISON Thierry

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 22, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

The Perrier caves are very good.
The plateau is very windy and not very interesting.

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Gesc
Gesc

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 13, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

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lsa77
lsa77

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 12, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Thank you for sharing this

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Jean-Louis Pinault
Jean-Louis Pinault

Yes, you have to find your way out of the maze of paths in the village of Les Roches before climbing up to the plateau!

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Pouilloux
Pouilloux

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 12, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

A very pleasant hike that takes us to the plateau above the Perrier caves. The landscapes are varied.
Only the path from the start to the plateau is not very well marked.

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